Pat Martin’s occasional bozo-eruptions can’t be well received by a party that has moved from the unelectable fringe to a legitimate government-in-waiting during Martin’s tenure. The NDP is making a concerted and deliberate effort to seem more reasonable and mature to the voters, and while the party and its supporters may grudgingly open their wallets to help Martin of this jam, their generosity can be expected to come with limits.

Mainly, limits on how forgiving the party brass will be for any future unforced errors like Martin’s fiery attack on Racknine. A sharp-tongued maverick had more of a home inside a fringe third-place party than he does in the Official Opposition. Martin had better get that message, fast.

OTTAWA — Outspoken New Democrat MP Pat Martin is asking the public for money to defend himself against a lawsuit by RackNine, the Edmonton company he accused of being responsible for vote-suppressing robocalls in last year’s federal election.

In February, Martin accused RackNine CEO Matt Meier and the company of being behind the robocalls that saw voters misdirected to non-existent polling locations during the May 2011 election, denouncing “hundreds of thousands of phony phone calls by the RackNine rascals.”

Martin eventually delivered an abject apology, acknowledging that Meier and the company had no involvement:

“I singled out a private individual, Mr. Matt Meier, along with his business RackNine Inc. and I wrongfully accused them of being part of a conspiracy to commit electoral fraud,” he said.

“I now know that the statements I made insinuating Mr. Meier’s and RackNine’s participation in an electoral fraud conspiracy were wholly and unequivocally false…. To my knowledge, neither Mr. Meier, nor RackNine, including any employees of RackNine, has ever been investigated for involvement in electoral fraud in the 2011 general election or otherwise.”

Despite Martin’s full-fledged retreat and apology in April, the company, which says Martin made the claims repeatedly and didn’t apologize until seven weeks later, is pursuing the suit.

It wants $5 million in damages, claiming “exceptionally inflammatory and sensationalistic” defamation and “ongoing malice” by Martin and the NDP.

The legal defence website says Martin has attempted to settle out of court without success.

“The court case is proceeding and legal expenses are mounting,” the website says. “We are reaching out to supporters for help in meeting these costs and we appreciate any contribution you might make.”

Any money that isn’t used for legal costs will be given to charity, the website says.

“In the event any surplus money raised it will be donated in equal parts to the Children’s Wish Foundation and the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.”

Martin’s apology in full:

Apology on Behalf of Patrick Martin and the NDP to Mr. Matt Meier and RackNine Inc.

“On February 23, 2012, I appeared before the national media to speak in response to the important issue of “Robocalls” in the 2011 general election. At that time I expressed my personal outrage along with the outrage of the caucus of the official opposition upon learning about the serious allegations of electoral fraud.

In making my statement on February 23, 2012, I singled out a private individual, Mr. Matt Meier along with his business RackNine Inc. and I wrongfully accused them of being part of a conspiracy to commit electoral fraud. In the days following, I repeated this accusation a number of times to the media and on national television. My party, the NDP, also raised concerns about the possibility of RackNine having committed electoral fraud through postings on its website. The NDP indicated on the party website that if news reports that seemed to draw a link between the calls and RackNine were true, these activities were prohibited by the Canada Elections Act and merited investigation.

I now know that the statements I made insinuating Mr. Meier’s and RackNine’s participation in an electoral fraud conspiracy were wholly and unequivocally false. In my rush to express my personal outrage and the outrage of the NDP caucus, I jumped to conclusions I now know are unsupported by fact. I would like to take this opportunity to correct several of my errors in order to clear Mr. Meier’s personal reputation along with the business reputation of RackNine.

To my knowledge, neither Mr. Meier, nor RackNine, including any employees of RackNine, has ever been investigated for involvement in electoral fraud in the 2011 general election or otherwise.

RackNine provides a legitimate automated call service similar to services used by many political parties.

RackNine was merely an innocent intermediary not a participant in electoral fraud.

I apologize for any damage my statements may have caused to Mr. Meier personally or to RackNine, and I have been specifically authorized by the NDP to apologize on behalf of the NDP for any similar damage the publications on the NDP website may have caused.”